Taco Bar Must Haves

Small bags of Doritos to make walking tacos.

Catalina dressing for anyone who prefers to have a taco salad (Doritos also need for taco salad).

I don't read ahead so forgive if I duplicate:

Meats:
ground beef
shredded pork
shredded chicken

Tortillas:
soft tortillas
crunch tortillas

Condiments:
guacamole
salsa
sour cream
refried beans
black beans
spanish rice

Veggies:
lettuce
diced tomatoes
sliced olives

Cheeses:

pepper jack cheese (shredded)
chopped/diced onions
shredded monterey jack cheese
shredded colby jack cheese

I set it up on a table and have spoons for both sides and let people walk down the table to fill their plates.

there are people that like white rice with their tacos and also nacho cheese. I might make a small gravy boat of nacho cheese if I have more than 12 people.

We do a taco, burrito, fajita bar.

If people want fajita's you need to know in advance so that you can get the right meat.

We have:

several sizes and types of tortilla shells
seasoned ground beef
seasoned diced chicken

sour cream, salsa, black olives (an ABSOLUTE MUST HAVE!!), avocados, shredded lettuce,diced onions, sauteed bell peppers (green and red), cheese !!! LOTS OF CHEESE!! refried beans, black beans

We have a round table that expands and we put the stuff on the table and people start with the plates and move around the table to prepare their meal.

Meat...maybe both ground beef and shredded chicken, even fajita meat, refried beans, soft tortillas, crunchy shells, sour cream, shredded colby cheese, shredded colby/jack cheese, Hidden Valley Ranch dressing, sour cream, mild chunky salsa, medium chunky salsa, hot if anyone likes hotter stuff instead of the medium, shredded lettuce, chopped fresh tomatoes, guacamole, and olives.

Might be more but I can't think of anything. We only do ground meat, Colby cheese, shredded lettuce, and ranch. Hubby likes sour cream occasionally but usually uses the ranch too.

I get Azteca taco salad shells and make one of those for me and have a taco salad.

sour cream
guacamole
shredded cheese (cheddar is good)
salsa
We've been using ground turkey instead of ground beef - it tastes great!

Shredded chicken or beef.
Diced avocado--i'm not a fan of guacamole but I love fresh avocado
Soft tortillas in addition to hard taco shells---I prefer soft
jalapeños
Shredded cheddar cheese, although a Mexican blend is good too
Refried beans
Salsa
Sour cream, or plain yogurt to keep the calories down--the kids may prefer sour cream but the adults ay prefer the plain yogurt
Diced green onion

Great suggestions, I'm not sure if I saw it or not but the option for taco salad.

Lots of great options below. I'll just add that my preference is to have the choice between the traditional taco (the kind that you eat with your hands, fillings placed in a soft or hard folded tortilla) and a bowl (a sturdy paper or plastic bowl that you can fill with either tortilla chips or brown rice or lettuce for a healthier option). Some people might like to place fresh chopped lettuce in a bowl and then top the lettuce with just vegetables, or all the available toppings. Some people find eating out of a small bowl at a party is neater (less chance of the taco shell cracking, or dribbling sauce down your shirt). Some people enjoy a lighter taco with more vegetables.

If it's for a party, I would keep it simple. I'm sure when you ask people, you will get a ton of suggestions and really, it would be too overwhelming and too much if you offer more than the basics.

I consider the basics: Ground beef, shredded lettuce, cheese and tomatoes with sour cream, taco sauce.

If I were to add "extras" to the items mentioned above: black olives, hard boiled eggs, guacamole and salsa. These are what I have when we make tacos for our family on Christmas Eve because we all like these same things. Good luck.

pico de gallo is a must! Made fresh with cilantro
Also avocado chunks with a little lime juice
We like marinating flank steaks and grilling them. Then I cut them into very thin slices that fit in tacos. SO good.
Black olives
Sour cream
corn salsa is a topping a lot of people like
Beans...black and/or refried
Chopped up jalepenos for those who love spicy
Different hot sauces
Plus all the regular toppings
Have fun!

Tortillas, taco shells, ground beef, shredded chicken, pulled pork, shredded cheese, lettuce, tomato, onions, sour cream, guacamole, black beans, refried beans, black olives, rice, pico de gallo, salsa, jalapenos.

Lots of good suggestions...

Kiddo doesn't like his tacos falling apart, and our family is small and can't use up the shells while they are fresh, so we often do 'taco in a bowl' with some blue corn chips, seasoned ground beef, grated cheese, sliced olives, fresh diced tomatoes usually seasoned with lime, salt, pepper, a drizzle of olive oil and oregano...... we keep it mild. And guacamole if there's a ripe avocado on hand. :)

Simple stuff for the essentials:
Meat
Refried beans
Cheese
Pico/tomato
Sour cream
Hard and soft shells

Anything else is bonus.

Ground beef or chicken or pulled pork
Black beans/refried beans
Lettuce
Tomato
Onion
Black olives
Cheese
Sour cream
Guacamole
Salsa/corn salsa or taco sauce
Hard shell/soft shell (flour or corn)/tortilla chips/tostada shells

This would give people the option of hard or soft shells or taco salad.

Avocado or guacamole
lime wedges
salsa - pico and green
beer

I think I saw it all in the comments...but here is what I would put out (and do put out) when we do TACO bars:

Hard tacos, soft tacos, soft taco bowls, Scoops chips
taco meat (hamburger)
refried beans
Spanish rice
shredded cheddar cheese (fresh shredded only)
tomato
lettuce (lots in case people want to make salads)
scallions
sour cream
salsa
guac
Queso

That's it! I've never had a complaint.

If I were doing a fajita bar, I would just switch the mean with chicken and steak and remove the crunchy taco. I would also add the sautéed onions and peppers. Everything else would stay the same.